What is criminology?

CRIM 100

Overview

  • What is criminology and how did it emerge?
  • Criminology as a multidisciplinary social science

The emergence of criminology as a discipline

What is criminology?

  • It’s the scientific study of crime

  • Criminology is NOT:

    • The same as criminalistics
    • The same as criminal profiling
    • An investigative technique used by detectives
    • A course you take to learn how to get away with a crime

How did criminology emerge?

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Infected

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Syntoms

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Diagnosis

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Treatment

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Cured

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Social backdrop

  • Urbanization & industrialization
    • Massive influx of people from rural areas and other countries
  • Percentage of young men increased
  • Birth control & divorce rate
  • Culture change

Crime increase

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Emergence of criminology programs

  • 1963
    • University of Montreal
    • University of Toronto
  • 1967
    • University of Ottawa
  • 1973
    • Simon Fraser University

Policies, programs & interventions

  • Community programs
  • Correctional treatments
  • Community policing
  • Hot spot policing
  • Crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED)
  • Situational crime prevention (SCP)

Effective results?

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Criminology as a multidisciplinary social science

Blank canvas

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People in the front

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People in the right

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People in the left

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Multiple perspectives

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Crime in Criminology

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What influences how we explain crime?

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The Classical School

Enlightenment–mid 1700s to late 1700s

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The Positivist School

Rise of social Darwinism - science & medicine - Mid 1800s into 1900s

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MAINSTREAM CRIMINOLOGY - Chicago School, Anomie-Strain, Control

Multiple social changes - 1900-early 1960s

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CRITICAL CRIMINOLOGY - Labelling, conflict, Marxist, feminist, white-collar

Social turmoil - 1965-late 1970s

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Opportunity theories - RAT, Rational choice, Environmental criminology

Conservative era - 1980s-early 1990s and beyond

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Biosocial, Life-course/developmental

Technological advancements - 2000 to present

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Criminological theory

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Important content

Key concepts and terms

  • Multidisciplinary social science
  • Criminology
  • Criminalistics
  • Criminal profiling
  • Situational Crime Prevention (SCP)
  • Crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED)